Kia Unveils Bigger, Better Second-Gen Seltos with Hybrid Power

The Seltos might just be Kia’s most important vehicle. An affordable crossover that’s sold pretty much wherever you are the globe, the second-generation model has a tough act to follow, but with a rugged redesign, improved practicality, better tech, and an upcoming hybrid powertrain, the South Korean automaker is off to a good start.

First Look

First thing’s first, the Seltos has gotten a significant visual update, inside and out. Familiar to anyone who has stepped into a Kia dealership recently, the new Seltos’ wide grille make it look like a little Telluride, and that’s on purpose. Not only does that mean the crossover is fluent in the automaker’s most up to date design language, it also allows it to trade on larger SUVs' reputations.

As is the fashion, Kia wants the little Seltos to look and feel like a real SUV, so models equipped with all-wheel-drive (AWD) will get off-road driving modes for surface conditions such as snow, mud, and sand. That’s in direct response to customer feedback.

Kia’s head of global product planning, Spencer Cho, told global media this week that consumers asked more capability and more space. As a result, the new Seltos’ wheelbase has grown 60 mm and it’s 45 mm longer overall. Somehow, that has resulted in a luggage compartment that is 80 mm longer, allowing owners to put more stuff in the crossover.

New Platform, New Tech

The growth is possible now that the Seltos has migrated off the K2 platform and onto the automaker’s K3 platform, which is shared with the Kona and the Niro. Four years younger than the old platform, the new underpinnings also means that 61 per cent of the steel in the new Seltos is high-strength steel, up from 49 per cent in the first-generation model. That leads to greater rigidity, improved driving dynamics, and better passive safety.

The updated model will also be more actively safe than the outgoing version thanks to the availability of a wide range of advanced driver assistance systems, including safe exit warning, parking collision avoidance, parking distance warning, forward collision avoidance, and more. In addition, highway driving assistance and lane following assistance will also be options that customers can choose to help them with maintaining distance to leading vehicles and following the road.

Elsewhere, the crossover’s tech suite has also been brought up to date, and the Seltos now features Kia’s panoramic display, which combines two 12.3 inch screens (for the instruments and the infotainment) into a single unit on its dashboard. Thanks to the automaker’s latest operating system, the infotainment system will be capable of over-the-air updates, will feature a voice assistant that works with help from ChatGPT, and Digital Key 2, which allows a driver to unlock and start the vehicle using their smartphone.

Under the Hood

As alluded to above, the next-generation Seltos will be available with a hybrid powertrain, which is a first for the nameplate. Unfortunately, the setup will only be available after launch, and the automaker has yet to reveal details about it. However, it has confirmed that the hybrid models will get regenerative braking and vehicle-to-load capability, meaning that owners can power small appliances such as a kettle or a mini-fridge straight from the vehicle.

In addition to the electrified powertrain, three internal combustion engines will also be offered. Two are 1.6L turbocharged units (a standard and a high output version). The standard output unit makes 177 hp and 195 lb-ft of torque and is connected to a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission (or a six-speed manual in global markets) while the high-output version delivers 190 hp and 195 lb-ft of torque via an eight-speed automatic transmission. Finally, a 2.0L naturally aspirated engine that the brand says is tuned for fuel efficiency will also be available. It makes 147 hp and 132 lb-ft of torque.

Final Thoughts

Kia Canada has yet to confirm which powertrains are bound for our dealerships, but North American drivers tend to prefer more powerful engines than drivers in parts of the world with smaller, slower roads than our wide open highways. It is almost inconceivable that the six-speed manual transmission would be marketed here.

We will learn more about the Canadian market version of the next-generation Kia Seltos closer to its on-sale date, next year. Production of the vehicle is set to take place in India, South Korea, and China, and will kick off this month.